Autumn always beckons me to load up my children and head up the endless highway to see what little treasures are reserved for us this time of year in the beautiful Eastern Sierra. Each year my children complain, “Mom do we have to do this again?” Of course the answer is always the same. ”Yes” we do. Unfortunately, with our busy schedules it isn’t that easy to coordinate all five children anymore at any one given time especially for something as trivial as “Mom’s yearly family photo session.” It’s my favorite season when the warm air becomes cool and crisp with the leaves turning into canvases of yellow, orange, red and rust. Autumn, with all its beauty, calls us to enjoy the great outdoors and is the perfect setting for a beautiful family photo and Christmas card. We almost missed the colors that beautiful afternoon with Homecoming setup in the morning and a two game soccer tournament in the afternoon. Somehow, we managed to load it up and head out for Mom’s yearly photo shoot by 4:00p.m.

With the kids in tow, lip gloss in pocket, and our dog jumping for joy to be able to go for a car ride we were ready and on the road. The colors were fading fast. The wind and cold snap pretty much denuded the trees. There were still spots of color in the canyons but the winds had taken their toll. Upper Rock creek was basically gone. There were a couple of good stands below East fork but the road was covered with leaves. Within minutes we had arrived at the perfect spot. Now I would recommend a strategically planned photo session but unfortunately our busy lives don’t warrant such a perfectly orchestrated event. Nonetheless, we did find our magical spot hence I did get my favorite photo of the year minus my eldest son. I will try again next year but to me this is a priceless photo of my beautiful children in the fall of 2011. Not too bad for a mother who is a Realtor with a camera that fits in my back pocket next to my lip gloss. For amazing professional photos I highly recommend John Gable photography at www.JohnGablePhotography.com.